anything but ordinary
by LiGiKi
Summary: i'm not good with summaries. basically... bella meets edward cullen while working at a shoe store. bella falls for edward. are they meant to be? please read it. all human. r
1. First Sight

**hope you like it! (:**

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I stacked the mountain high boxes of shoes in the back room as I kicked the empty cardboard box out of my walking path. I struggled on my tippy toes to put the last box on top when I lost my balance. Boxes and boxes of shoes fell on top of me, creating a loud racket. I gulped. Mr. Jordan is going to fire me. This was the third time this week I made an accident. The backroom door flung open and Mr. Jordan glowered at me with horror.

"S-sorry," I mumbled, tripping up to get on my feet. "I'll clean it up."

"Bella, forget the boxes… are you hurt?" Mr. Jordan had asked.

"No."

"Okay. That's all I need to hear." he turned towards the open door and called, "Mike!"

"yea, boss?" Mike's voice had answered.

"Get over here and help Bella stack this boxes!" Mr. Jordan had instructed.

"'kay, boss."

Mike Newton strut into the room and gave me a bewildered look as he saw him surrounded by now dented shoe boxes. He gave me a small smile as Mr. Jordan swiftly left the room. We both watched him leave.

"Fall again, Bella?" Mike had said. **(a/n: emmett from eclipse!! Teehee)**

I shrugged and picked up a box.

"You know…" Mike had started in an attempt to make his voice seductive. "I can take you over to my place and help you with any injuries."

I caught the double meanings in those words and rolled my eyes.

"No, Mike. I will not go out with you."

He scowled and started to stack boxes alongside me. Twice, he pretended to accidentally grab my hand. When he did this, I pulled away quickly as fury boiled inside of me. Why couldn't Mike just leave me alone? Gr… As soon as we were done, I rushed out of the room in an attempt to avoid Mike from asking me out, again. He had already tried to ask me out five times this week. This has gone far enough. I grumbled to myself and met Angela. She was taking care of the cash register.

"Hey, Ang," I quickly greeted.

She turned towards me, gave me a smile and nodded.

I work at a shoe store which also carried accessories, jewelry, and handbags. This is my third month working here and the salary is enough to just get by on my apartment rent fee as well as bus transportation fee and a couple of meals. My apartment is only a few blocks away from where I work. The never-sleeping city always had new thrills and excitements to attend to. Until I had enough free time for that, I was stuck working at Platinum Emporium. I was a sophomore at the college in the city studying medicine. Mike Newton and Angela Weber had also worked with me in this store. I befriended both of them quite easily. Well…. I was friends with Angela. I didn't really like Mike for he was only interested in going out with me.

I sighed as I snapped out of my little world. That was when the store door jingled, marking an entrance. I gawked at the beautiful, tall man who with emerald green eyes. His white tee shirt clung to every muscle in his chest. He looked like a model. I examined him thoroughly, my eyes greedy. He had tousled bronze hair. His nose was perfect as his lips were full and flawless. He looked to be the same age as I was. Accompanying him was a beautiful woman with strawberry blond hair. She was very pretty indeed as she dragged the boy's hand toward a chanel bag on a display case against the wall. The boy didn't seem very interested and a frown of annoyance plastered on his beautiful face. The girl seemed oblivious.

I waited for the right time and took a deep breath. I walked towards them. The boy turned to me with a blank expression which sent chills up my spine. The girl was still too absorbed in the bag.

"May I help you with anything?" I asked them. Well the boy, anyways because the girl didn't seem to hear me.

The boy gave me a small smile which caught my breath short and said, "no thank you. We're doing just fine."

His voice was so luscious, and velvety smooth. I returned a smile and walked away towards Angela. Angela giggled.

"You so like him," Angela snickered in my ear.

"Is it really that obvious?" I asked, bewildered.

"Yes," she giggled back.

I liked Angela. She didn't force me to do anything and she was always so understanding. I watched as the girl dragged the grimacing beautiful boy all around the store, gasping at every piece of accessory with sparkles in her eyes.

"Eddy, look at this one!" she squealed.

His frown became more pronounced at the name. His eyes flickered onto my face as he caught me watching them. I turned my face down in embarrassment and started to blush. I turned my back towards them, giving them privacy.

"My name is Edward," the boy growled under his breath at the girl.

She seemed to ignore him as she moved onto a coach watch. The boy by the name of Edward didn't seem to like being in here.

"Can I get all of these?" the blond girl pleaded to Edward.

"Tanya," Edward had started. "Do you want me to go bankrupt?"

Again, she ignored him. Her face met mine and she motioned me to come. Surprised, I stumbled over my own feet as I went over to them. I thought I caught a glimpse of Edward chuckling to himself, very lowly.

"C-can I help you with anything?" I asked her politely, trying not to look into the boy named Edward's eyes, afraid that I would lose my train of thought.

"How much does this cost?" the girl by the name of Tanya had asked, jingling a very valuable Tiffany bracelet in front of my eyes.

"349.99", I announced.

The girl cocked her head in thought and went over to the chanel handbag.

"What about this?" she said, indicating to the big black handbag.

I walked over to her and said, "1464.99".

She smiled.

"I want this one, Eddy," she said, facing Edward.

"Okay," she said to him. Then he turned to me as my eyes widened with awe at his beauty. "I'll take this one."

"o-okay," I said, putting the chanel bag back into the showcase. I awkwardly walked away into the backroom and got the same chanel bag and returned to the register. I carefully wrapped it and put it in a bag while Angela told him the total. I gave the package to Tanya who let out a squeal of glee. I smiled, sheepishly. Edward handed Angela his black, platinum user credit card as she swiped it. Wow. He had a black platinum. He must be….. Rich. I frowned. Rich people were snobby. And this particularly beautiful boy was rich. Gr… The boy turned his head slightly and caught my grimaced expression. I looked down again, quickly, trying to hide my blush. I saw a hint of smile playing on the corner of his lips as he restrained it.

"Okay, thank you for shopping at Platinum Emporium. Have a good day," I heard Angela say to Edward and Tanya.

A wave of sadness washed over me. He had to leave and I would probably never see him again. Once again in my peripheral vision, I saw Edward's emerald eyes looking at my expression. I tried not to meet his eyes. I sighed and was about to walk away when I bumped into Mike. Ugh… Mike.

"Hey, baby," Mike said seductively. "Want to grab a coffee with me?"

Edward's gaze was now intently on mine, obviously hearing what Mike had said.

"Mike…" I started. "Once again… I am not interested, nor will I ever be in going out with you. Please stop asking me."

Suddenly, Mike's expression grew harsh.

"There's another guy, isn't there?" He said with much sourness.

I flinched at his sudden mood.

"No," I snapped. "I'm not going out with anybody."

"Then why won't you go out with me?" Mike had demanded.

"Because I don't like you how you like me!" I said, raising my voice a little.

Mike's expression turned sour. He called out to Mr. Jordan, "I'm going on my lunch break!"

"Okay," a muffled voice had said.

Mike swiftly stalked away and was out of sight. Thank gawd. I peered up and saw Edward looking at me with a curious expression. His eyes looked troubled. I gazed into his eyes. This time, I did not break it. Slowly, I got lost in the sea of emerald that beheld in his smothering eyes. He gazed intently into mines.

"Edward!" Tanya had snapped. Her voice instantly made me drop my gaze on Edward. Tanya was waiting impatiently by the door. "Let's go! We have to get to the mall!"

Edward reluctantly moved his gaze away from my face to face Tanya. He followed her out the door. As soon as he was about to step out, he turned his head one last time to look at me. Then just like that, he was gone.

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**Does this edward cullen like Bella? is this the last time she will see him? Tell me what you think and review! next chapter coming pretty soon**


	2. Mystery Man

**Hey!! sorry it took super duper long to post this chapter. i was too caught up with school work adn stuff. Anyways, hope you like it. (:**

**disclaimer is on my profile. **

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I was glum for the rest of my shift, knowing that I let a beautiful boy slip out of my fingers like that. All day, I was discombobulated with the rest of the world as I tried to figure out the looks he was giving me. He only seemed to be looking at me with a peculiar interest. He seemed to be annoyed with this Tanya girl.

Twice, I knocked down a shelf full of handbags in my own clumsiness and twice had Mike attempted to take me out somewhere. I was so relieved when the clock struck 6:30. My shift was over. I hung out my work uniform in the employee lounge as Mr. Jordan was counting today's profit in the register. I picked up my few belongings and dashed out of the store before Mike could utter a word. As soon as the cold city air hit me, I was most relieved; as if I can finally breathe again without the monitoring of Mike.

I walked down a block, swerving through pedestrians. That's when something... I mean someone caught my eye. Ahead of me, I heard a low grumble coming from a smooth attractive voice. That person was holding the passenger door out open and he seemed annoyed as he peered into the silver Volvo. A whining sound came from inside the car. I observed as the whining sound seemed to be refusing to go somewhere while the low grumble was trying to persuade her to go somewhere. As I went closer, his face abruptly turned to my direction in a snap. His emerald eyes glimpsed at mine then went back to glare inside the car. I watched with aw.

I sighed as I tugged my trench coat tighter around my body. The wintry crisp smell made my nose turn slightly pink. Trying not to intrude, I stepped in the coffee shop that the silver Volvo was parked in front of. I took a seat in one of the arm chairs as I tried to unfreeze my numb fingers, ears, and nose. From the coffee shop entrance, I heard the swinging of a door as some people walked in. I did not inspect the entrance thinking it was no one I knew. As the chair from the table adjacent to me screeched, I glanced over. The Tanya girl was plopped in it with a sulky expression on. She didn't look like she wanted to be here. I sighed as I stood up and went up to order a drink.

"Hi, may I help you?" said the woman behind the register.

"Um… may I have a caramel espresso with a hint of vanilla in it?" I ordered.

"Sure," she said while pushing some buttons on the register. "Is that it?"

"make that two," a smooth velvety voice behind me had said.

I froze. Who was this person to just intercede? And why did this voice sound so…. Familiar. I felt my eyes starting to widen in horror. Was he here? Stiffly, I turned around to be met my a pair of fabulous emerald green eyes. He was, too, looking at me with the same intensity he had on earlier.

"That would be $6.47 all together," the woman behind the register had said, breaking me out of the trance I was in.

He slipped a bill to the cashier without even looking at her.

"No change," he mumbled.

"You didn't have to do that," I blurted out, unthinkingly; still lost in his eyes.

"My treat," he muttered.

Suddenly, a wave of panic washed over me as I glanced quickly at the table Tanya was at. To my surprise, she was gone. Edward seemed to notice my expression as I turned to look at his flawless face.

"W-w-where…" I started.

"She called a taxi and left," he explained with no emotion.

"But…"

"She didn't want to be here, that's all."

"Because of me…."

"She isn't aware."

I stared into his face. He seemed to be rigid about talking about this Tanya girl. When our order was ready, he grabbed the two cups and sat down at the table I was at earlier. He motioned me to come and I obediently walked over to him. I sat down across the table from him as I took a sip of my coffee.

"So. I never got your name," He said.

I peered over my piping hot drink as I saw him looking intently at my face again. I dropped my gaze as I looked down.

"Bella," I finally managed to say.

"Edward," he said.

"Is she your girlfriend?" I asked unthinkingly.

Mentally, I gave myself a smack on the head. What a stupid question like that. However, Edward didn't seem to think it was stupid.

"No," he began. "She's my little sister's friend. She, uh, has sort of a liking for me and today happened to be her birthday. My little sister, Alice, asked me to just take her out for the day."

"Oh," was all I could manage to say as I absorbed the perfect formality of his speech. "Why me?"

His expression changed to a puzzled look as he said, "What do you mean?"

I took a deep breath and gave him a small smile.

"I mean… why are you talking to me? I'm nothing special."

He gave me a crooked smile that took my breath away. He never really answered my question and I let it go. Soon enough, we were both done with our coffee as he held the door open for me to get out, like a perfect gentlemen.

"Thanks for the coffee," I breathed.

He gave me another crooked smile and said, "Can I give you a ride home?"

His words surprised me.

"N-no thanks. My apartment is really close from here. Like just a couple of blocks," I explained.

Why on earth was I telling him where I live? I gave myself another mental smack. I shivered with much violence as another arctic breeze whirled around me. Edward obviously noticed as he raised an eyebrow of concern.

"You'd freeze if you took another step," he said with humor in his voice.

I smiled with chagrin. Suddenly, he was tugging on the sleeve of my coat as he was dragging me to his car. Normally, I would have screamed, but considering the fact that he was just so beautiful, I let him take me away. He opened the passenger seat open for me as I stepped inside and closed the door. He was already inside as he started the ignition and turned the heater up. I sighed at the warmth and gazed at his perfect face. He didn't seem to notice as he backed out of his parking space.

"Where do you live?" He asked.

"Um. Keep going straight. My apartment is on the right, in front of the bus stop."

There was a silence as he drove me there. I was trying to find my courage to make small talk. He seemed to be in deep concentration, almost as if something was going to pop up and shoot him.

"Thanks," I said with hesitation when he came to a stop in front of my apartment.

I didn't want to leave. He gave me a beautiful crooked smile. I gazed back at him idiotically as I stumbled out of his car. I thought I heard him chuckle and my face burned furiously red. Without looking back, I strolled into my apartment complex. As soon as I arrived to the seventh floor, I plopped down on my couch and sighed. I bet I made the worst first… second impression on the more gorgeous guy in the planet. Wow. I should be in the records book. Ugh.

I got up from my seat and walked over to my window and peered outside. Edward's car was no longer there. Frantically, I searched the furthest corners of the street, squinting my eyes to see a silver Volvo. Still no luck. Gosh. This Edward Cullen is fast. Almost as if he's too good to be true. I sighed again.

Suddenly, my kitchen phone shrilled. Startled, I banged by head on the frosty window, knocked over a few books on a table, and tripped over a chair leg on my way to the kitchen. Wow. A new record. By the time my hand snatched the receiver, I was out of breath. Who was it? What if it was mystery man, Edward Cullen. I smiled at the thought.

"Hello? Bella here." I practically sung into the phone.

"Hey, baby. You sound better than ever," a voice said from the other end.

I could feel my high spirits collapse in utter disappointed. Ugh. Why did Mike always have to ruin my good moods?

"What do you want?" I snapped.

"Don't be so tense, baby. I just wanted to ask if you were free tonight. Mike will give you a good time if you come, baby," he crooned.

I made a gagging noise that was inaudible by Mike and scrunched my nose. He was disgusting.

"Er.. Mike, no thanks… and I'm not your baby so stop calling me that."

"Why won't you go out with me?!" his voice suddenly whined into my ear.

I held the phone away from him, hearing his voice raise into a girly octave. Ewer. Despicable. I sighed.

"Goodbye, Mike."

"H-hey! Wa-" was all I heard when I hung up on him. The phone rang again and glanced at the caller I.d. it was Mike again. Ugh. In aggravation, I disconnected the phone wires and shoved it in a kitchen drawer. Maybe that will stop him. I sighed with relief at the fact that I didn't give him my cell phone number. Then that would be bad. I practically lived on my cell phone.

The sun was setting as I sat near the open window blowing a cool breeze into the room. A pleasant shiver ran through my body as I flipped the page contently of my beaten up copy of Wuthering Heights. Gee… This book never gets old. I watched the sun finally disappear behind the skyscrapers in hues or pink and orange until it darkened into a rich royal purple. At least the evening was going well. It had been a quiet 30 minutes without the calls from Mike and that was a new record. Wow. Come to think of it, a lot of records are being made. I smiled to myself and cracked open my medical book that I had leftover homework from. I worked on it the rest of the night and dreamed of those brilliant leaf green pearls that I've witnessed today in my sleep. By then, the sky had turned into a blue bruise. This would probably be the last time I saw Edward Cullen again and my heart sunk with disappointment and despair. Hopefully, at the strike of luck, I'd be able to see him again.

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**Did ya like it? I know it may not have been quite interesting, but i promise the story will get better (:**

**Will Bella ever see mystery man ever again? or will he just fly by like every other guy? and what will Bella do about the Mike situation? Well, you'll just have to wait and find out (:**

**and i promise i was update faster this time **

**Please Review! that;s what totally motivates me to write! (and i also need ur honest opnion on wat u thought. constructive critisim is also good if you wanna)**


	3. Unfortunate Luck

**Hey guys! sorry for the long update. It's been a while, i know. i apologize. Hope you can understand. School work has been killer. lol. I feel awful so here ya go! enjoy (:**

**btw, i have a new story up. It's called: Like Fire on Ice. Please read it and tell me what you think!  
**

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**disclaimer in profile**

Chapter 3: Unfortunate Luck

The alarm clock shrilled at the top of its little AA batteries. Not wanting to get up, I slammed on the snooze button. Argh. I slipped back into deep sleep when this time, my phone vibrated obnoxiously on my night stand. I had no choice but to get up. Irritated, I snapped open my cell phone without looking at the caller ID and growled into the receiver.

"What?" I said a little too harshly.

"Bella?" a surprised small voice said on the other side.

Immediately feeling horrible about my impoliteness, I quickly tried to soothe the voice.

"Oh!" I stammered. "I'm so sorry! That was unintentional." I could feel my face burn red.

The voice chuckled. "It's okay. It's Angela, by the way."

"Hehe, sorry about that. So, what's up?

"Well I was wondering if you wanna have brunch with me and a couple more people before we go to work."

"Brunch?"

"Yea."

"Isn't it a little too early for brunch?"

The voice paused. "Not unless you wanna have lunch….?"

My forehead creased in confusion. Lunch? Did she say, lunch? At 8am? Isn't she supposed to say breakfast?

"Um. Angela? Don't you mean 'breakfast'?" I offered.

"Um….. Sure….. I guess we can have breakfast if we went three time zones away."

What? What is she talking about? Wait a minute…

"Huh?" I started. "Wait… Angela, what time is it?" My voice became a little frantic.

"An hour before noon," she stated.

HOLY CROW! I SLEPT IN THAT LATE!!! Groggily, I fell off my bed as the phone hit the floor. My shift started in an hour and I was still dangling in my bed sheets. Shoot.

"Bella, Bella?" the voice called worried, "Are you okay? Bella?"

I snatched the phone off the floor and quickly replied, "yes, I'm fine. Er, Angela, it appears that I slept in a little too late today so maybe I can meet you guys up there. I'll be out in a couple of minutes, so you guys order ahead of me."

"Haha, okay. See you later," she said and the phone disconnected.

Shoot.

I scrambled off the floor and quickly took the shortest shower of my life of five minutes. My hair was still damp when I left my apartment and immediately regretted it by how cold it was outside. I'm gonna turn into a popsicle. My high heels scrapped awkwardly on the floor as I tried to put them on properly as I walked. People gave me odd looks as they passed and saw a girl dragging her feet across the pavement with soaked hair and a coat wrapped around her for dear life.

Twice I stumbled on my way towards the diner Angela told me to go. Curse my inability to walk upon a flat surface… On the bright side, no severe injuries occurred. Grateful that I still had my life at the end of the block, I waited impatiently for the crossing light to shine the baby green.

Suddenly a car pulled up next to me. Aggravated by my belatedness, I cared no attention. The car still waited next to me. What was wrong with this driver? Can't they just leave average (or below average) pedestrians alone when they have to get somewhere without any kidnapping of some sort? Gosh. I was going to turn around and yell at the driver when the crossing light turned green and I almost sprinted to the other side. I speed-walked down the block, but the car still followed me, matching my pace. Why, I oughta…. I still managed to stumble even in my cautious haste. The diner was only seven more blocks away. Shoot.

"Would you like some help?" the voice in the car offered.

More aggravated then ever, I swiftly turned to the car and was about to curse him out when a pair of emerald eyes made me stop short. All irritation left me quickly as I felt dumb-founded in the middle of the sidewalk. It was Edward.

"Oh!" I said in alarm. I took a step back but tripped on my heels and ended up flat on my butt in a thorny bush. Ow…..

He was suddenly out of his car with the engine still on, as he rushed to my side, helping me back on my feet. He seemed to be hiding a laugh with a cough and I frowned. Why do I always make a fool out of myself in front of beautiful people? I gave myself a mental smack. I suck.

"Are you okay?" he asked, amused.

"I think so," I replied, still aw-stricken.

"Would you like a ride to wherever your destination may be?" He offered.

He eyes examined me and I couldn't help but blush furiously. I was a total train wreck with leaves and dirt in my hair and yet he still wanted to help me. He didn't let me answer and suddenly he was dragging me by the wrists to his car. I sat in the warm heated car and sighed. If Edward was a kidnapper, then he was definitely the most successful.

"Where to?" he asked as he slid into the drivers seat.

"I'm supposed to have brunch with some people at the diner seven blocks away," I murmured.

He gave me a crooked a smile that I didn't deserve and then the car shot forward. A few more minutes of awkward silences later, I was there. I stumbled out of his car into the frigid temperature. I probably looked like I was stranded on a desolate island for God knows how long. I was annoyed at myself. I caught Angela's glance of horror when she saw me through the window of the diners. Yeap… That's probably what she thought of me when she saw me. I am fortune's fool.

"Would you like an escort inside?" Edward said, smugly.

I frowned.

"Are you referring to my incapability of walking on a flat surface without something to trip on?"

"I guess that is another way of putting it," he teased. "Quite frankly, I'm kind of scared to let you go alone. It doesn't help with the situation that you're wearing three inch heels…"

My silence gave him the notion that it was okay and he cut the ignition and bolted to my side. Quite gracefully, actually. I blushed at the ridicule. He grabbed my arm gently and helped me inside. I was grateful. If it wasn't for him, I would probably still be on a sidewalk somewhere with wounds in need of surgery. As the rush of warm air blew in my face when I entered the diner, I was horrified to find Mike one of the occupants of the table. Shoot. As if my day couldn't get any worse…. Angela sent me an apologetic smile as if she didn't want him here either but had no choice but to let him stay. I grimaced. It was as if God and satan were in a battle to control my fate. I sighed.

Mike had his eyes wide open in surprise at the sight of me and Edward and quickly jumped out of his seat. He grabbed the arm that Edward had and snatched it out of Edward's grip. I flinched at Mike's touch and took a step closer to Edward. I could see that Edward didn't like the fact that Mike took me away from him and Edward knew that I didn't like the fact that Mike took me away from Edward. Mike tried to drag me with the most cavalry sweep, but it was obviously pretty ridiculous by the way I objected.

"Bella, let's go," Mike growled, shooting worried glances at Edward.

Edward glowered at Mike.

"And who might you be?" Edward asked in a surprisingly polite-y tone.

"I'm Bella's proud boyfriend and she is proud to be _my_ girlfriend," he said.

My jaw dropped in horror. Did he just say that? Was he serious?

I opened to my mouth to contradict what he was saying. I released Mike's grip on me and glanced at Edward. His expression was emotionless. Shoot. What has Mike done to me, now….. I groaned silently. I didn't know what to say. I was still in shock.

Soon enough, Edward swung back around and walked fast and gracefully to his car, his fists balled up in knuckles. I watched with a sudden sadness and faced Mike with fury.

"What was that for? Ugh!" I spat at Mike with my arms thrown up in the air out of frustration.

Before Mike could answer, I whirled around and ran in my aching feet towards Edward who was almost at his car. When he slid into his drivers seat and turned the ignition on, I reached the passenger seat door. I wrenched it open and sat down, staring at Edward. He had his hands firmly clenched onto the steering wheel. He Didn't look at me, but I knew those emerald gem stones turned into ice. He gaze was focused directly in front of him even though there was noting interesting there to look except for a few trees and passing cars.

"Edward," I croaked.

"You could have told me you had a boyfriend before you lead me on," He said, his voice rough.

What? I lead _him_ on? Was he serious? Fury bubbled inside of me. Oh, the irony.

"What are you talking about? There's nothing going on between me and him! I'm serious!"

"Like I haven't heard that one before," he grumbled.

I didn't understand. Why was he taking this so at heart of a calumny? I didn't know what to say next. He closed his eyes and through gritted teeth, what he said next was enough to make my heart break.

"Please, get out of my car," he said, almost inaudible but not with any friendliness.

My mouth was gaping now. I didn't even do anything! Saddened, I obeyed, not wanting to cause any more social destruction on my and his behalf. Reluctantly, I forced myself out into the sub zero temperature and watched him speed away three times above the speed limit. Shoot. I am definitely fortune's fool…

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**What will happen next? Is this the end for Bella's encounter with Edward?  
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**thanks forr reading!! review please!!**


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